Your Life My Well Being
by HelloLoveGoodbye
Summary: Zero fights to control his blood lust as he stands before a dripping wet and nearly naked Yuuki. He is losing the battle. Yuuki, though scared for her life, still makes it a point to protect Zero, even in such a vulnerable situation for her. One shot.


_Crawling in my skin,__  
These wounds, they will not heal.__  
Fear is how I fall.  
Confusing what is real._

_A shower_. Zero decided. _I need a shower._

Sore from his prefect duties, behind on homework, and his insatiable thirst causing him to lose sleep, he was exhausted. To top it all off, he couldn't get Yuuki out of his mind, try as he might.

So he decided that a hot shower might do something to take the edge off of everything, at least for the moment.

Grabbing a change of clothes to sleep in, and a towel, he made his way down the hall towards the Chairman's bathroom. Though he wasn't prepared for what was on the other side of the door. Somehow glued to his spot under the door frame, he stood, staring at Yuuki as she stared back at him, in nothing but a towel. She was nearly dripping wet, and she wore a confused expression.

"Zero! Knock first!" She repeated to him for what seemed like the millionth time. It seemed he never remembered that one simple rule about closed doors.

He remained in his spot, his gaze zeroing in on the flesh of her gleaming throat, the sheen of water making it all the more alluring to him. His eyes flashed from their regular violet to that haunting red that still sent chills down Yuuki's spine. She didn't miss the change of color in his eyes, and involuntarily took a small step back.

She wasn't afraid of him, but she wasn't sure how comfortable she was with him staring at her the way he was while she stood with only a towel to keep from exposing herself. That and she hadn't gotten the chance to dry off completely to her liking before he barged in. She'd barely had enough time to cover herself up.

She took a deep breath, and stepped forward again, never taking her eyes off of Zero.

"Are you all right, Zero?" She asked him.

As she stepped towards him, her towel produced a small breeze around her legs that inevitably floated over to Zero, where he inhaled her scent. The heat in the bathroom and the water dripping from her body making her smell that much more delicious to him. Her neck was still exposed and it was beckoning to him, begging him to take whatever he wanted from it.

The thirst boiling up and over, his violet eyes were consumed wholly by the red, and he dropped everything he was holding onto the floor, never taking his eyes off of Yuuki's blood pumping through the artery in her throat. The human side of him tried desperately to stay in control. He'd never forgive himself if he hurt Yuuki twice.

_There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface.  
Consuming, confusing.  
This lack of self control I fear is never ending.  
Controlling._

He barely heard her calling to him, asking him if he was okay, as the haze took over. He clenched his fists, drawing his own blood as he dug his finger nails into the palm of his hands. Smelling the blood only made his lusting that much stronger and he mentally kicked himself for being so senseless.

He was losing himself. And he was afraid. Afraid of hurting Yuuki again. Afraid for Yuuki's life. Afraid that if he did what his vampire side wanted him to do right now, he'd lost Yuuki forever.

_She'd never leave your side. She cares too much for you._ Zero's conscious thought through the haze. He was fighting desperately to regain control before he did something he'd regret forever. He couldn't let himself hurt her again.

_Just a little taste, just a little blood, it will be okay._ His demon tried to reason with him.

_No! None! I can't!!_ He thought as he imagined how Yuuki would react to this grim side of him sucking at her life force for his own selfish purposes. The thought of it almost made him sick.

He took a step forward, towards Yuuki, without ever making the conscious decision to do so, and inside he screamed, begging himself to stop. He was losing this battle. He couldn't do this to her again.

_Run Yuuki! Run!_ He mentally pleaded, hoping she'd see it in his eyes, as he was unable to voice the words to her.

_I can't seem  
To find myself again.  
My walls are closing in.  
(Without a sense of confidence  
I'm convinced that there's just  
too much pressure to take)  
I've felt this way before.  
So insecure._

The vampire nature inside of him was screaming at him to grab Yuuki's delicate form in his arms, force her to obey his will, and bite down on the flesh that seemed to taunt and tempt him so, drinking the blood right out of her body. The reasonable side of him broke through, pointing out that she'd most likely allow him to drink from her as she had before, as long as he showed some sort of restraint. Where as right now, he was in no control, and he was on the verge of doing things the hard way.

This was not looking good for Zero, and inside of his mind, he was beginning to tremble. He didn't want to lose Yuuki's trust. He couldn't. He wouldn't be able to function without her. He knew this, though he'd never openly admit that to anyone, least of all her.

But this disease that ran through his body, making him the monster he was, made him blind to the damage he was about to do. He was afraid, completely distraught, on the inside as he slammed his fists into the walls of his mind, begging to be released from his confinement, as his foot took another step forward, towards a now frightened looking Yuuki.

_Crawling in my skin.  
These wounds, they will not heal.  
Fear is how I fall.  
Confusing what is real._

Yuuki knew what Zero's problem was the moment his eyes turned that threatening shade of red. She was more then willing to give him the blood he needed and from her very own veins at that, but not when he lacked the control necessary to stop when he knew he had to. In the state he is in, he could very well kill her, and she knew that.

She took a step back, truly scared now, as Zero took a step, then another step towards her. The wall was coming up behind Yuuki, and once she reached it, she knew there would be nowhere else to go, no way out of this mess. She couldn't call for help, because she couldn't involve anyone from the day class. The night class students were in class right now, and they wouldn't be able to hear her anyway. Chairman Cross was most likely already sleeping, so it was just her, and Zero.

She needed a plan.

Zero continued to plead with his eyes. Desperate now, and on the verge of tears. Yuuki had reached her limit. She'd bumped into the wall with her last step, and there was nowhere else for her to go. She was at the mercy of the monster inside of him. And that thought alone cut a whole in his chest so deep that he wasn't sure it would fully heal even if he got out of this mess with Yuuki unscathed.

The burn in the back of his throat was nothing to the mental and emotional pain he was enduring as he watched Yuuki stare at him from the other side of the room, her chest rising and falling quickly as she inhaled short, panicked breaths. She knew she was in danger. She knew she should be afraid. So why didn't she run? Zero couldn't understand.

Yuuki knew though that there wouldn't be any way around Zero. The bathroom was exactly huge, and Zero's body easily took up most of the space in front of her, the space she _could_ use to run around. But Zero could just reach out and grab her without breaking a sweat, and then she'd really be in trouble. No. Running was out of the question. She needed a better plan then that.

The adrenaline causing Yuuki's blood to pump faster and louder in her veins, wasn't lost on Zero. He heard the increase in her heart rate, he heard the blood as it rushed through her body, calling out to him like a Siren's song, making him lick his lips, as he imagined what her blood would be like once again flowing over his lips and down his aching throat.

His rationality was almost completely consumed by desire now. And his last rational thought was how much he hated himself now. How much he hated what he was. How much he hated that this...this _monster_ was and always will be a part of him.

_Discomfort, endlessly has pulled itself upon me.  
Distracting, reacting.  
Against my will I stand beside my own reflection.  
It's haunting how I can't seem  
To find myself again._

My walls are closing in.  
(Without a sense of confidence  
I'm convinced that there's just  
too much pressure to take)  
I've felt this way before.  
So insecure.

She'd run out of time. She knew that she'd run out of time as the emotions she'd seen in Zero's eyes faded into almost nothing. There was nothing she could do but wait, and hope that he didn't take too much blood from her. Her only goal now was protecting Zero. That meant she had to shut the bathroom door somehow. She _had_ to get around Zero. She wouldn't run, no, he'd only chase after her, and that could cause bigger problems. She just needed to shut the door so if anyone were to be walking around the hallways right now, they wouldn't witness Zero's moment of weakness.

She needed to protect him. And she would.

Zero felt his vampire take control, knowing he'd lost. He was weak. He couldn't even protect the woman he loved from himself. All he could feel now was the burning desire to drink the blood from Yuuki in order to sate his thirst. He felt the desire creep through him like a miasma, fogging his vision, flowing through his own bloodstream, crawling in his skin.

_Crawling in my skin.  
These wounds, they will not heal.  
Fear is how I fall.  
Confusing what is real._

He was only mere feet from Yuuki now. One more step, and all he'd have to do was reach out and grab her. But even his vampire can be surprised. So when she took a quick step toward him, he stopped dead in his tracks, eyes wide, and stared at her, not comprehending what she did next until it was too late.

Or so he'd thought.

He growled as he thought he'd lost his meal when Yuuki quickly jumped around him and ran for the door. He spun around in time to hear the door shut as quietly as possible in a moment of haste, and was surprised yet again when he saw Yuuki still standing in the same room as him, only now the door to the outside world was shut.

It was just him and her now. No one else could pry or watch or catch him in his moment of hunger...his moment of weakness...his moment of self control. Somewhere deep within him something stirred, and a warmth spread through his body as he realized why Yuuki had shut the door and stayed with him when she could have easily just gotten away from him.

And that act alone was enough to make room for reason again. Zero broke through the fog that coated his mind in thick layers. His thirst subsided, if only slightly, and his eyes began to flicker back and forth between that lovely shade of violet and the red that further proved his hunger.

Yuuki saw this, too, and acted on it quickly.

"Zero. You need to snap out of it!" She said to him in a calm, comforting voice, pulling a shirt over her head slowly in order to hide some of the flesh that tempted Zero. "I know you are in there. You can fight it! Your so strong, Zero! I know you can fight it."

As Yuuki's movements caused the air to stir once more, her scent flowed into Zero's nose and he tasted it on his tongue. Violet eyes changed to red again, and didn't change back.

_There's something inside me that pulls beneath the surface.  
Consuming, confusing.  
This lack of self control I fear is never ending.  
Controlling..._

For a moment, he thought he'd lose reason once more, but what Yuuki said next, stopped him cold, making his chest ache and his stomach churn painfully, the burn in his throat momentarily forgotten.

"...I know you won't let me down, Zero. You never have before...please don't do it now." Yuuki said in such a small voice, she was afraid Zero may not have even heard her.

But he had, and the red in his eyes faded completely, returning to the violet shade that Yuuki adored so much. Zero looked at Yuuki in horror, his eyes wide, and fell to his knees as tears began to pool in the corners of them. He fell to his knees, and looked down at the ground, not wanting Yuuki to see him in this state.

He was ashamed. Disgusted with himself. He didn't deserve somebody like Yuuki in his life. He certainly didn't deserve Yuuki, and he thanked God every day that he had her, that she stood by him no matter what. He only hoped she'd still be by his side after this. He was more afraid now, that she'd never want to talk to him again, then he'd ever been before.

_Crawling in my skin.  
These wounds, they will not heal.  
Fear is how I fall.  
Confusing what is real._

Yuuki dropped to the floor in front of Zero, keeping only a few inches between them. She knew he had regained reason. She knew he wouldn't hurt her now. She knew he was okay now. She also knew how he was reacting to this, how he felt, what his thoughts were. She knew Zero like the back of her hand. And she wouldn't ever allow him to feel the way he feels now.

"Zero." She said, reaching out a hand to place on his cheek, feeling the wetness from his tears.

He flinched, surprised that she'd want to touch him at all, or speak to him in such a kind voice after what just happened. Yuuki was truly an amazing person.

_Your too good to me, Yuuki._ He thought in awe of her, more tears spilling down his cheeks.

"Zero, your okay now." She whispered. "Your okay."

She placed her other hand on his other cheek and forced him to look at her. His eyes were slightly bloodshot from crying, and her heart ached at the sight of him sheding tears. She gasped when his bottom lip quivered, and she pulled him into her arms, holding him tightly against her, telling him everything he needed to comfort him in that one embrace.

Though the embrace didn't seem to be enough for her. She wanted to tell him, to make sure he understood. She rocked him back and forth, running her fingers through his hair and down his back where she rubbed soothing circles there. He was silent the entire time, but she knew he was still crying, for she felt the wet of his tears as they began to soak through her shirt.

And she never let him go. She wouldn't until he felt better. He had no reason to blame himself, and she wouldn't allow him to. He has two sides to his one body and one mind. He couldn't deny his vampire, and hopefully he understood that now. He can't continue to starve himself, so maybe now he will let her provide for him whenever he needed it - wanted it.

"Zero, you mustn't blame yourself. You know this isn't your fault. I always knew it wasn't your fault. And I never would have blamed you. Not for one second. No matter what." She told him, trying to make him understand.

"I'm here for you Zero. Through all of it. Through everything and anything. I'm here for you, no matter what. Never forget that." She continued.

Zero inhaled a shaky breath, taking in her every word. He didn't agree with any of them of course, but he had no right to deny Yuuki anything. What she says, goes now. He'd do anything she asked of him. He owed her at least that much.

"Zero, your thirsty." She reminded him. She pulled away from him slightly, causing Zero to want to cry out, but he held it in and looked at her, wondering why she'd pulled away at all.

To his horror, she removed her shirt, still wearing the towel underneath, and tilted her head to the side, exposing her throat to him. He looked away, trying to keep his eyes on anything but her.

"Zero, I said I'm here for you. That means I'm here for you through _anything_." She pulled his face to look at her again. "Drink. Please. For me. Just do this one thing for me."

He had no right to deny her wishes, he owed her so much. So he nodded his agreement, no matter how much he detested having to do this, and leaned in towards her throat. Opening his mouth, he closed his eyes, and bit down, feeling the warm liquid already begin to flow over his lips. He became lost in it almost instantly, always savoring ever drop of Yuuki's blood.

He stopped when he took enough to sate his thirst, and backed away from her slightly, wiping the blood from his chin.

"Thank you, Zero. You really don't know how much that meant to me." Yuuki said sincerely, smiling at Zero.

Zero shook his head slowly, and threw his arms around Yuuki. "No, Yuuki. Thank _you_." He said with so much conviction it caused Yuuki's eyes to widen significantly_. _

She smiled once again, and wrapped her own arms around Zero's frame as they sat together on the tiled floor of the bathroom.

_I love you, Yuuki. _Zero thought, tightening his hold on Yuuki.

_Your everything to me, Zero._ Yuuki thought as she reveled in the warmth of Zero's embrace.


End file.
